Disinvestment in health— the challenges facing general practitioner (GP) commissioners

Abstract

The economic downturn is placing increasing pressure on the financing of health care. For many health care providers, this means difficult decisions need to be made over what will and will not be funded. The NHS has not typically been good at decommissioning and disinvesting in services. The recent proposed changes to the commissioning function will mean that clinicians will have a leading role in population-based priority-setting. This could well enhance the quest for legitimacy in relation to difficult resource allocation decisions. However, it is unlikely that GPs alone will be able to meet the challenges ahead, and reasonable disinvestment decisions will require GPs to engage with a number of stakeholders including government, interest groups and the wider civic society.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Suzanne Robinson

Suzanne Robinson is lecturer in the Health Services Management Centre, University of Birmingham, UK.

Helen Dickinson

Helen Dickinson is lecturer in the Health Services Management Centre, University of Birmingham, UK.

Tim Freeman

Tim Freeman is lecturer in the Health Services Management Centre, University of Birmingham, UK.

Iestyn Williams

Iestyn Williams is lecturer in the Health Services Management Centre, University of Birmingham, UK.